In Annapolis earlier this year, careful election procedures proved their worth.
During routine audits of the September primary, officials discovered that released vote totals in a City Council race had been mistakenly swapped between the candidates. To ensure transparency, the city conducted a public recount of all paper ballots.
Maryland in 2016 largely returned to analogue methods, replacing fully electronic voting.
The state had first introduced electronic machines in 2002, but amid security concerns, the General Assembly in 2007 voted to switch back. Then budget constraints delayed full implementation for several years.
The city contracts with the Anne Arundel County Board of Elections to administer the vote.
In the 2025 general election, Annapolis residents will cast votes for mayor and members of City Council. The city contracts with the Anne Arundel County Board of Elections to administer the vote, but unlike state elections, the municipal vote does not offer early voting or same-day registration.
Here’s a look at how Annapolis uses traditional methods and collaborates with state agencies to keep votes secure.
What steps are taken to protect mail ballots?
When mail ballots go out, voters are notified by text or voicemail that their ballot is on the way, according to David Garreis, director of the Anne Arundel County Board of Elections.
If a ballot doesn’t arrive within a few days, voters can contact the state to arrange for a replacement or pick one up at City Hall. Election officials can detect mismatches between the number of ballots issued and the ballots counted during audits (more below).
Officials also send another notification once a completed ballot is received, whether it comes through the mail or a drop box, so voters know their vote is safely in hand.
What technology is used to store and access voter information?
Annapolis voter information is stored in a statewide database called Maryland Voters, which has been active since 2006. Maintained by the state’s Board of Elections, the system processes daily updates from both residents who make changes online and county election officials who maintain local records.
The state uses a “multilayered” defense system to protect voter data, regularly scanning its database for potential threats through a team dedicated exclusively to election security. The group also conducts routine cybersecurity drills and collaborates with federal agencies like the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency to keep systems up to date (though that agency has recently been hit with budget cuts and layoffs).
How is registration status updated before Election Day?
Maintaining accurate voter rolls in Maryland — including Annapolis residents’ — relies on partnerships with several state agencies.
The Motor Vehicle Administration sends updates, such as address changes or party affiliation, to election officials whenever residents renew their driver’s licenses.
The State Board of Elections also works with the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to compare reported deaths against voter records each month, removing any matches to prevent outdated registrations. Additionally, officials coordinate with the Administrative Office of the Courts to cancel registrations for individuals serving time for felonies, Garreis said.
What measures are in place to ensure the security of voting machines?
Before each election, officials run a maintenance cycle to check the machines’ physical condition and conduct logic and accuracy testing to ensure ballots are tabulated correctly and the software is up to date, according to Garreis.
Locks and numbered seals are placed on each machine, and election judges verify them on election morning to confirm no tampering. A “zero total” report is also generated to document that no votes have yet been recorded at the start of the day.
How are votes counted?
After voters complete their ballots, election judges insert them into scanning machines that track ongoing totals. Each machine produces a totals tape and stores results on a memory stick.
The totals tape is sent to City Hall, while the memory stick goes to the Anne Arundel Board of Elections’ warehouse, where it’s uploaded to a secure server for tabulation. The summary from the server is then compared against the totals tapes to produce the unofficial results, Garreis said.
The servers, separated into unofficial and official results, aren’t connected to the internet. Plus, he added, they’re kept behind keycard-secured access in the warehouse.
“It’s compartmentalizing,” Garreis told Technical.ly. “If you could compromise one part of the system, the other parts are still unaffected … at the root of everything, you still have those paper ballots.”
Election results aren’t certified until about a week later, after the city completes audits to verify that the machine totals match the paper ballots.
What’s the process for conducting election audits?
Before the election is certified, officials conduct post-election audits by hand-counting votes cast at selected polling places or in specific contests to ensure the machine totals match the paper ballots.
That’s when officials discovered the discrepancy with the City Council vote totals from September. The public recount was held to restore voters’ confidence in the accuracy of the process, Garreis said.
“The hand count showed that the voting units themselves, all of their totals matched,” he said. “It was to validate that the machines were correct and that it was just a human that mistyped it.”
The audit also helped affirm a close city council race in Ward 4, which was decided by only four votes.
“When people say ‘Oh, my vote doesn’t count,’” Garreis said, “if you’re voting in one of those municipal races, it can count a lot.”
